Senator Jeff Sessions announced that Bender Shipbuilding & Repair Co., Inc. has been awarded a contract for the drydocking of the
USS Ticonderoga, the Navy’s first Aegis Cruiser, presently homeported in Pascagoula, Miss. The vessel’s overhaul is being managed by the Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion in Pascagoula, Miss. for the Department of the Navy. The repairs are scheduled to being in February 2002. The work package includes rudder, shafting, valve, structural and electrical repairs as well as major preservation items that presently total approximately $8 million; employing approximately 125 shipyard workers at the peak of the 120-day contract. Bender has the option pricing in place for additional work that could bring the total package to almost $16 million.